While others were conscientiously refining their materials with fire and drawing arrays, Mo Tianliao was carving carelessly. He still needed to add a bathroom and Qingtong’s favourite rocking chair to the cat house.
This competition would last for ten days and nights. The arena was covered by a huge barrier, before the end of the competition, nobody would be able to go in or out of it.
As night fell, Liuli lanterns were lit up in the meeting place, but the people from the various sects did not leave. From every single drink to every single bite, everything was cultivation, even if one was not studying crafting or alchemy, some knowledge might still be gleaned through observation. Disciples from different sects were forbidden from having close personal relationships, but the Elders and Peak Masters, who had a higher status, did not need to follow this restriction. Sometimes, for the benefit of the sects, appropriate social interaction was necessary.
The Liuyun Sect set up a banquet on the host’s platform, inviting the Elders of various sects to partake.
Qingtong glanced at Mo Tianliao, who was enjoying himself, kicked Xuanji, who was reluctant to go, then stepped in mid-air and flew to the Liuyun Sect section. The big tiger stood up and shook his fur, then followed.
The Leader of the Liuyun Sect offered one toast after another, and the Elders of the small sects uneasily accepted them. Outside of the three major sects, to the other minor sects, Nascent Soul cultivators were already considered very high-level, most of these Elders were Nascent Soul cultivators, when seeing a Half-Immortal cultivator, they did not dare to act imprudently.
The people from Qingyun Sect and Woyun Sect sat opposite each other at the front of the banquet, each sect had brought two Elders. When Yun Song, who had been looking arrogant, saw Qingtong coming, he abruptly stopped talking.
“Qingtong Zhenren.” When Yun Song’s shimei, Yun Yuan, saw Qingtong, she immediately stood up and greeted him with a smile.
Yun Yuan was the only woman among the Elders of Qingyun Sect, she was very talented, still looking like a mortal in her twenties. She was elegant and lovely, a famous beauty of the cultivation world. While smiling charmingly at Qingtong, she hit her shixiong beside her, indicating that he should say something.
“Humph!” Yun Song snorted and did not greet him. He was thoroughly humiliated at Woyun Sect last time, not to mention that the death of his grandson was related to the Woyun Sect, he had just not been able to find any evidence, there was no way he would be able to put on a smile on his face.
Qingtong sat down in his seat without even looking at the two, the atmosphere immediately became awkward.
“Yun Yuan Zhenren, you’re as beautiful as ever,” Xuanji greeted her, his tone dull and indifferent.
“Xuanji Zhenren says the exact same thing every time.” Yun Yuan could not help laughing, although she was talking to Xuanji, her eyes still looked at Qingtong.
Although Yun Yuan looked young, she was in fact thousands of years old, yet she still had no partner. A few hundred years ago, the Sect Leader of Qingyun Sect had tried to unite their sect and the Woyun Sect through marriage, with just a glance, she had been taken with Qingtong Zhenren, the peerless beauty, but though the dropping flowers pined for love, the heartless brook babbled on.
“This tiger still can’t transform?” Yun Yuan sat down and pointed to the colourful tiger lying at Qingtong’s feet. “I remember that he has excellent spiritual roots.”
The big tiger, meanwhile, was licking his paws intently. When he was mentioned, he turned to look at her but then continued to lick his paws.
“My Phoenix Tailed Kite can do it already.” Yun Yuan raised her hand, and a small bird with a long tail flew over and landed on her slender jade-like finger. Then she seemed to have received her Mistress instructions and with a flap of her wings, she flew to the big tiger and settled on his head. Demonic Beasts had their own way of communicating with each other, if one’s own spiritual pet got closer to another’s spiritual pet, thanks to the blood pact’s influence, this would have some effect on the Demonic Beast’s owners.
The Phoenix Tailed Kite pecked the big tiger on the head and said, “You can obviously shape-shift. Why do you hide it?” Beast cultivators could also detect each other’s level of cultivation, those with a high level could see through those of a lower level. The Phoenix Tailed Kite could see that the cultivation of this tiger was similar to her own, it made no sense that he could not shape-shift.
The big tiger yawned and said, “If I become a human, I can’t eat large chunks of meat.” Just then, Zi Mo, who was done roasting meat on the other side of the stage, brought a tray to the big tiger, it was a roasted deer leg, he also gave Qingtong and Xuanji a plate of sliced meat.
Besides eating it, Zi Mo also enjoyed roasting meat. It had to be said that his barbecue skills, when compared to Mo Tianliao’s, were not bad.
The Phoenix Tailed Kite craned her neck and looked at Zi Mo, then lowered her head again and continued pecking at the tiger’s head. Those who entered Woyun Sect learned how to conceal their Beast qi first of all, even if they met another Demonic Beast, they would not be discovered once they took human form.
The big tiger held the deer leg and quickly devoured it.
The leopard belonging to the Elder in charge of the administration of Liuyun Sect looked at the big tiger with disdain, she had heard that the eunuchs of mortal palaces were very fat, since they would become gluttonous after castration; it seemed to be true. As a high-level Demonic Beast, they should eat sophisticated animal food pellets, it was really so disgraceful to gnaw on meat like that, tsk-tsk…
The Phoenix Tailed Kite was also perplexed by this gluttonous way of eating meat. She flew in a circle and then turned into a little girl with delicate features, she sat at Yun Yuan’s feet and massaged her legs.
“Roaaar.” The big tiger glanced at Yun Yuan and then used his cry to communicate. “It’s surprising that you’re not a boy, given just how lecherous the old witch is.”
The Phoenix Tailed Kite rolled her eyes discreetly, privately she thought: With your crude appearance even if you were to turn into a voluptuous woman, you’d still not be your beautiful Master’s type!
“Yun Yuan Zhenren, your spiritual pet is lovely.” The Sect Leader of Liuyun Sect came to propose a toast, and glanced at Yun Yuan’s spiritual pet with a creepy smile. He was even more determined to become a couple with Yun Yuan. If he married Yun Yuan, he could naturally enjoy her spiritual pet a couple of times.
The big tiger stopped gorging himself, looked at the flinching Phoenix Tailed Kite, sighed secretly, and bowed his head to continue eating. Xuanji took the turtle shell out and slowly wiped it with a cloth towel, polishing every dent. Qingtong was not at all interested in the hidden vibes of what was going on around him. He slowly drank a glass of wine while looking at the far-off arena.
With his Half-Immortal eyesight, he could see Mo Tianliao’s situation even though the distance separating them was vast. He was just taking out the piece of Profound Space Stone, wrapping his fingers with spiritual force, and drawing an array on it.
“This time, a total of 20 tokens were made. Are you planning to go, Qingtong Zhenren? I’ll set one aside for you.” A glass of wine was passed in front of him, blocking Qingtong’s view of his own scratching post.
His cold eyes slowly rose and glanced at the man whose face was crinkling in a smile. “No need.” The twenty tokens were for the Juniors to compete for, all major sects already had a spiritual talisman that could be used to go through the outer layer of protection on the Mo Palace. No one had been there for many years; they still feared the array.
After drinking the wine, Qingtong grabbed the big tiger by the scruff of the neck and said, “I’m leaving first, enjoy yourselves.” After he said that, he took to the air and flew back to the Woyun Sect seats, no longer willing to deal with this group of two-faced Elders.
Mo Tianliao did not know that his cat was capable of normal social interactions, he was still concentrating on making the cat house. While the Profound Space Stone had not yet solidified, he quickly took the carved tables, chairs, doors and windows, and stuck them in it, while at the same time he used his spiritual power to shape it. It was like a child kneading mud to build a palace, putting stones and leaves into it as furniture at the same time.
When the sun rose in the early morning of the tenth day, the gongs and drums rung, signifying the end of the competition.
Ding Ziyu calmly walked out of his crafting station and saw his haggard looking brother. He smiled and said, “Was brother successful?”
“With much effort,” Ding Zijin replied with a false smile. “Peak Master Ding seemed to have a plan, so it is better for you to go first, it’ll give our Liuyun Sect a good start.”
Ding Ziyu smiled and looked humble. “Big brother is praising me too much, this younger brother doesn’t dare.”
Ding Zijin choked, he felt disgusted enough to throw up. He walked quickly, put the thing he had crafted in its place and retired.
A row of more than 20 spatial magical tools were placed neatly on a long table. Led by Liuyun Sect Elder Ding Hu, the famous craftsmen of the righteous path were invited to judge, while the rest of the Elders watched from the side.
Spatial magical tools were easy to judge, the size, stability and appearance just needed to be compared. When their work was being judged, the craftsman could come forward and state what was special about the item. After judging several storage magical tools, Ding Hu paused on a storage bracelet. “This is…”
He obviously knew that this was crafted by his youngest son, but it was an ordinary storage bracelet. Although the space was not small and the array was stable, it was nothing unusual.
“This storage bracelet is a little special.” Ding Ziyu stepped forward and took out a jade box. “In here is the Withered Leaves Grass that my disciples picked just this morning. You will understand if you come and take a look again after you have seen the rest of the magical tools.” After saying that, he took the Withered Leaves Grass out of the jade box and put it in the storage bracelet.
It was well known that Withered Leaves Grass would decay within a quarter of an hour after leaving a jade box. They immediately understood Ding Ziyu’s intentions and were astounded, there were many jade boxes that could keep qi from leaking, but storage bracelets which could do the same were rare.
Given the suspense this item brought, the interest in seeing the rest of the works faded a little. Although the theme was spatial magical tools, if one wanted to win the competition, special features were obviously a requirement.
Ding Ziyu raised his chin slightly and looked at his brother.
Ding Zijin sneered. Seeing everyone observing his magical tool, he said slowly, “This looks like a storage bracelet, but it can also be changed into something else.”
With these words, he put the glowing storage bracelet in the palm of his hand, and with a thought, it instantly turned into a hairpin, then, with another flash of light, it turned into a small ring.
“Does it utilize a Starfall Stone combined with a space folding array?” A craftsman took the ring and examined it carefully, looking excited.
“Exactly.” Ding Zijin smiled faintly.
“The younger generation will really surpass the older!” The white-bearded craftsman patted Ding Hu on the shoulder. “The two sons of Great Master Ding are truly giants among men!”
“Ha ha ha…” Ding Hu laughed very proudly.
By the time all the magical tools had been reviewed, two hours had elapsed, Ding Ziyu’s storage bracelet was picked up again and they took out the Withered Leaves Grass inside. The little spiritual grass was still verdant and fresh, even the dewdrops on it were still there.
Everyone was amazed. Ding Ziyu said with a smile, “This has a space array superimposed with a qi gathering array and a qi holding array, it can keep its contents fresh and has temperature insulating properties, if fresh food is put in and taken out a month later, it will still be warm.”
The superposition of a space array and a qi gathering array to maintain qi inside the space had been an idea that the crafting world had been pondering for a long time. It would be the basis for crafting spatial magical tools that could hold living beings, if this could be done well, an item in which living creatures could be placed was just around the corner. And after even further developing, they might be able to contain people, spiritual fields, and then finally they would be able to create an independent world, something only the gods could do!
In comparison, Ding Zijin’s shape-shifting storage bracelet was inferior. Ding Hu was very proud, his illegitimate son always brought him so much prestige!
Just when they were ready to give Ding Ziyu the first prize, a dark figure suddenly rushed up. They could merely see a man wearing a dark black robe with a messy bun holding some black thing. “Sorry everyone, I overslept.”
Mo Tianliao had been way too tired after he had finished crafting, so he had just gone to sleep. When he had opened his eyes again, he had found that the jade walls around him had fallen down, and his cat was sitting at the judge’s platform in the distance, glaring at him.
Profound Space Stone would discharge black ink when it was refined. At the moment, Mo Tianliao’s face was covered in ink, the thing in his hands was also completely black, he looked like someone who had come just to throw the whole gathering into disarray.
“The deadline has passed.” Ding Hu looked at this man and frowned. Craftsmen were elegant individuals; this unkempt appearance was a disgrace to the whole of the crafting world.
“Brother Mo must have been too focused on crafting. Mo shidi is the only one participating from Woyun Sect, please Elders, take a look at his work.” Ding Zijin urged that even if the first place had to go to another sect, it would be better than being too complacent.
“Yes, let’s have a look.” Ding Ziyu looked at the newcomer who was in trouble, although he could not see his face clearly, he felt a bit familiar. He was definitely going to win, so it was a good idea to have one more foil to set off his brilliance.
Hearing this remark, everyone looked at Qingtong Zhenren, who was sitting at the back watching the procedures, the Woyun Sect only had this one craftsman, it seemed unreasonable not to give him a chance. They motioned for Mo Tianliao to present his black thing.
Mo Tianliao put what looked like an incense burner on the jade table.
“What is this?” Ding Hu frowned; he did not want to touch something covered in ink.
“Can I borrow a pot of clear water?” Mo Tianliao adjusted his clothes and smoothed out his messy hair.
A Liuyun Sect maidservant soon brought a pot of clear water, Mo Tianliao washed his face first, then he emptied the pot of water over the “incense burner”.
With the flow of the clear water, the black ink was washed away, leaving a glittering and translucent miniature palace. It was really a palace!
After the Profound Space Stone was refined and all its ink was removed, it became completely transparent. With upturned eaves in graceful curved shapes, carved beams and painted rafters, it was only as big as an incense burner that could be held by two hands, but it was exquisite in all respects, just like a real palace. Through the glittering and translucent walls, one could clearly see the furnishings inside, such as tables, chairs, beds, couches, incense burners, low tables, a rocking chair carved from crystal on a little pavilion, and even a curtain made from mermaid silk hung around the bed.
Even if it had not been a magical tool, just as a sculptor this man had already reached the ultimate peak of perfection!
People surrounded the exquisite little palace and marvelled at the awe-inspiring craftsmanship. But Ding Ziyu could not focus his eyes on the table, he kept staring fixedly at the handsome face that had been revealed after washing away the ink. Eyebrows like swords and eyes like stars, with striking features, his handsomeness had a hint of the unnatural, even if he were to turn into ashes, he would never forget this face, that of Lord Duantian!
Unedited, please point out any mistakes
Thank you again for the ko-fi, lilibeth
So sorry for taking so long, I’m trash. I had a migraine that would. Just. Not. Go. Away.
Later today I’ll post Saturday’s chapter